Snippets of Essence
by SkullAuror107
Summary: Scenes that didn't make it into The Essence Books.
1. The Check-Up

This will be a series of stories that take place during my main story The Essence Books. They didn't make it into the main story for a number of reasons. Mainly because I thought of them after I had already posted a chapter. But some because I felt the flow would have been interrupted.

Title is subject to change. If you have any ideas let me know.

Disclaimer: I do not own, although it would be pretty cool if I did.

Takes place during Chapter 7.

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The Check-Up

Madam Pomfrey was of half the mind to hex the next person who walked into the Hospital Wing. Not that she really would mind you. It was just the principle of the matter. It had all started off simply enough. First thing Monday morning the Headmaster had stopped by to inform her that Mr. Potter would be stopping by for a full check-up sometime this week. Which was, as previously stated, simple enough, it was after all one of the first things taught to Healers. You can't help your patients if you don't know what's wrong with them.

Unfortunately running a full check-up was not mandatory at Hogwarts. In fact, according to Hogwarts by-laws it was only to be done when requested by the student's parents or the student himself. Of course a student would never ask for such a thing (they all seem to be under the belief that they're invincible) and parents were rarely informed of this by-law (it was assumed they knew of its existence).

Over the years Dumbledore had tried going to the Board of Governors to have the law overturned in favor of making them mandatory for all students entering Hogwarts for the first time. More often than not he found himself rebuffed by either a Malfoy or a Nott who had blackmailed and paid the other Governors off. The Board has changed a great deal since then, but now the main obstacle was tradition. The members were so stuck in their ways they refused to change the rules.

Poppy had wanted to do a full work-up on Mr. Potter the day Dumbledore carried him into the Wing unconscious. She would have too had it not been a fire-able offense. She enjoyed her job here too much to let that happen. And Dumbledore trusted her with his special cases (such as Mr. Lupin, who was one of the sweetest boys she ever met).

Back to the point though, it was now Thursday and she still hadn't seen Mr. Potter. Curfew was fast approaching and with it a visit from either Minerva or Mr. Lupin (who seemed to be taking turns to see if he finally showed up). It was then that she heard the doors opening up and someone shuffling in. She rather hoped it wasn't Mr. Longbottom again. He had an alarming habit of injuring himself. Or at least he claimed he did. And while she could admit that most of his injuries were accidental she had treated a few she knew for certain were caused by another student.

So you could understand her surprise when she left her office expecting Mr. Longbottom only to see Mr. Potter fidgeting by his usual bed. "It's about time you showed up Mr. Potter; I've been expecting you since Monday."

"Sorry. I – er – I was busy. You know homework and stuff."

She rolled her eyes at his obvious lie. "Be that as it may this is just as important. Now do I have your consent to run a full check-up on you?"

"Yeah."

"Good. Hop up on the bed, I'll be right back." With that she went to one of her file cabinets and pulled out a piece of enchanted parchment and a silver dagger.

"Alright Mr. Potter, I need a few drops of blood from you," she said showing him the silver dagger. "You can either cut your finger yourself or I can do it for you. Which will it be?"

Harry looked at her warily. He had thought that she would just wave her wand and tell him what was wrong with him. He had never imagined blood being involved. "I can do it."

She handed him the dagger, "Excellent. Just cut your finger carefully – there's no need to go too deep – and let a few drops of blood drip on this parchment." While Harry watched the paper absorb his blood Pomfrey had begun closing the cut and before he knew it she _was_ waving her wand over him. Various words and numbers were appearing in the air before disappearing, only to be replaced with another set.

"So – er – why did I need to bleed on the parchment?"

Madam Pomfrey paused in her work. "Hmmm – oh. It's a common method of transferring results from the scans I'm running without me having to pause between each one to write it down." She was about to go back to her tests when she saw him looking at her curiously. "Basically the parchment has enchantments on it that detect the spells I'm casting and record the outcome of them."

"But then wouldn't it record any spell you cast?"

"Yes it would, which is why I needed your blood. Now it will only record the ones I use on you. The effectiveness wears off after an hour or so."

Pomfrey cast a few more spells before looking at the parchment. "Your results are just about finished." Looking at the parchment he had momentarily forgotten he saw that it was nearly full. "While we wait I want to get your measurements. Follow me."

Pomfrey led him over to the other side of the room where she kept a scale and height chart. "39kg and 150cm. Not a bad weight for your height. You're a bit shorter then I would expect given your parents height, but that's nothing to worry about. You'll be hitting your growth spurt soon enough."

Harry sulkily followed her back to the bed where his results were waiting. He hated be short. He didn't think he stood a chance of ever being taller than Ron but he did hope that one day he would be taller than Hermione. He wondered how long he would have to wait for that growth spurt.

"Hmmm. Let's see. According to this you have a few vitamin and nutrient deficiencies and you've had them for about a decade. Some of these deficiencies cause problems in your bones, making them weaker than they should be. Luckily for you the Skele-Gro I gave you last year repaired any damage you had and strengthened your bones.

"These deficiencies also could be a factor in your height. As we start correcting them you'll reach at least average height in no time at all. Now you're already on a Nutrient potion – "

"No I'm not."

"Honestly Mr. Potter, this is a boarding school. Everyone who eats the food served from the kitchens is on one. Between all the homesickness, depression, exam nerves and teenagers trying to watch their weight it's a necessity. I want you to return here once a week for a couple of supplemental potions to help speed things up. Every month we'll retest you to see if we can take you off of any.

"Now, I'm not going to lie Mr. Potter, but your test concerns me. Had you not been receiving meals here for the last two years you would most likely be in worse conditions. These sorts of deficiencies often cause illness. Though I can't say for certain, I'm quite sure you haven't suffered worse because your magic was fixing what it could. But magic can only do so much, which is why some of the effects are still lingering.

"You seem to have inherited your father's eyesight. He was also shortsighted. How long have you been using that prescription?"

"I'm not sure," Harry answered. His brow furrowed in thought. "I think I was in Year One in primary. I was tested at school and they sent a note home saying I needed glasses," which the Dursleys threw a fit over. Aunt Petunia had been forced to take him to an eye doctor and then got him the cheapest pair she could find. Dudley ended up breaking them a week later and he was forced to use sellotape to repair them. He was lucky that it was only the frame that ever broke.

The witch held back a groan. She had hoped the prescription was more recent. "Have you been to an eye doctor since?" He shook his head. "Then you need to go, the sooner the better. That prescription is most likely very out-of-date. There are a few places, both Muggle and magical, I can recommend when you're ready."

"Can't I just take a potion or something to fix my eyesight?"

"If that was possible do you think you would see many wizards and witches wearing glasses?"

"No," he said sheepishly.

"As I said before, magic can only do so much. Perhaps one day someone will make such a potion, but until then you're stuck with glasses. Now, we have one last thing on here. I scanned you for curses, hexes, jinxes and charms. And I can happily say they all came back negative." That was just about the only positive thing to come out of this check-up.

She sighed as she rolled the parchment up. "Well, Mr. Potter, unless you have any questions you can return to your Tower. Just be sure to see me in the morning – before breakfast – for your potions." With that he hastily said goodnight and left.

Poppy took the scroll into her office and began preparing her report for the Headmaster and his Head of House. (Whenever a student is put on any type of potion regiment it is a requirement of the Healer to inform them to ensure that said student doesn't miss a dose.)

It wasn't long before she heard the doors open again and the sound of brisk steps making their way to her office. It was going to be a long night, and she was seriously considering rethinking her thoughts on hexing someone.


	2. Letters with Figg

Disclaimer: I do not own.

Starts in Chapter 10 and continues to a currently unfinished Chapter 12.

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 _Dear Mrs. Figg,_

 _Hi. This is Harry. Harry Potter. I hope you don't mind me writing to you. One of my Professors, Remus Lupin, mentioned meeting you a few times. He told me that you knew about magic and Hogwarts and_ _Vold_ _, I mean You-Know-Who. I wish I had known sooner. It would have been nice to be able to talk to someone about magic during the summers. Especially after first year. It kinda felt like I dreamed the whole thing. I understand why you didn't say anything though._

 _And I'm sorry for not coming around these last two summers. I wouldn't have known what to say about school had you asked me. I know Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon have been telling everyone I attend St. Brutus' and coming up with lies to tell Aunt Marge about it this summer was hard enough._

 _Well, anyway that's really it. I told Hedwig (that's my owl) to wait in case you wanted to send a letter back. I wasn't sure if you had an owl. If you're okay with it I would like to continue writing you. So, that's it. And, uh, thank-you for watching me over the years._

 _Harry Potter_

* * *

 _Harry,_

 _Of course I don't mind you writing me. I'm going to give Hedwig a bit of a rest before sending her back. You have a beautiful owl by the way._

 _Remus Lupin, there's a name I haven't heard in a while. How has he been? I remember him always looking tired and worn out. But considering the times I can't really blame him. We all were._

 _Petunia seems to enjoy spreading that particular lie. I don't know how you lasted this long with them; I can barely keep my temper during a short conversation. And that boy! Can you believe I caught him kicking one of my cats? Poor Jasper, he's refused to leave the house since._

(Here Mrs. Figg went on to talk about her cats/kneazles and her breeding business. A few sentences was all it took to bring Harry back to the time he spent with her and caused him to remember one of the main reasons he avoided her during the summer. He promptly skipped to the end of this particular topic.)

 _How has Hogwarts been? I saw in the Prophet that they were posting Dementors in the area because of Black. (That's another name I haven't heard in some time. He seemed like a good lad when I met him. It was horrible hearing how he betrayed the Order.) Is it true the Dementors were attacking students? It must have been horrifying._

 _And for why I've never told you, well, I was following Dumbledore's orders. I was to keep an eye on you but not say anything, you were too young. (It also wasn't my place to tell you.) I'm sorry I gave you such a miserable time, Harry, but the Dursleys would never have let you come if they'd thought you enjoyed it. It wasn't easy, you know. Ah well, there's nothing to be done about it now._

 _Try not to get into too much trouble and be sure to write back._

 _Arabella Figg_

 _P.S. Do send Remus my greetings._

* * *

Harry put the letter from Mrs. Figg down. He hadn't thought she would want to continue exchanging letters. But now that she was able to talk freely with him she wasn't so bad. Of course she still went on and on about her cats, but he learned long ago to tune most of that out. He learned some interesting things too. Like Black being in something called the Order. He wondered if he Lupin would tell him what that was. It sounded like he was a part of it too.

All-in-all writing her wouldn't be too bad. He just would try to limit the letters to every couple of weeks…maybe a month at most.

* * *

Excerpt taken from OotP Chapter 2.


	3. The Prefect Meeting

Disclaimer: I do not own.

Takes place during Chapter 10. This one is really short.

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The Prefect meeting (which was attended by each Head of House and the Headmaster) was successful. Just like in Gryffindor Tower Percy explained things to his fellow Prefects. The Headgirl (Penelope Clearwater) had come up with the brilliant idea of writing out what would be said to the students in the remaining three Houses. Percy had provided the bulk of the information, but several Slytherins and a Ravenclaw were able to add a few points that he had missed. They even prepared themselves for any questions they may be asked. When all was said and done each of the students received 20 points.

Snape had (privately) made it clear to his Prefects that they were to follow the outline and give the speech as objectively as possible. He then attended that meeting under a Disillusionment Charm in order to obtain the names of students who would use this information to help spread anti-Muggle sentiment. He'd have to keep a closer eye on those particular students.

McGonagall had pulled Percy aside and had him bring his brothers to her office. The boys had been shocked to find the Headmaster waiting for them there. He gave the Weasley boys 20 points each for educating their fellow students on what was often considered to be a taboo topic.

The next morning Molly Weasley would receive the shock of her life. While she was quite used to letters regarding the twins' misdeeds and numerous detentions she never thought she would get a letter praising them. She couldn't be prouder of her boys. Molly spent the rest of the day making goods for a larger than normal care package for the boys, making sure to add a few of Ginny's favorites as well.

Two days later, an exhausted Errol flew into the Great Hall with a package for the Weasley children. Inside they found all their favorite biscuits and cakes and pies. Mrs. Weasley had even baked some treats for Harry and Hermione.


	4. Study Time

Disclaimer: I do not own.

Takes place during currently unfinished/unwritten chapter. But fits any time after Chapter 10.

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A few days later found activity in the castle returning to normal. The somber mood that had prevailed in the wake of the talk was beginning to lift. Unfortunately if you were friends with Hermione Granger this meant you were forced to listen to her rant about falling behind in her revision. Much to Harry and Ron's horror she began drawing up schedules for them.

From that point on they were often found in the library. Hermione would have her head buried in a book, while Ron daydreamed and Harry scribbled on his parchment. Their third night in the library Hermione caught them playing hangman. She had been furious that they weren't taking things seriously. There were barely three weeks left of term and they were going to be tested before break started.

Harry and Ron shared a look while she ranted at them. They had seen her impossible workload night after night and neither could understand how she managed it. It was obvious that she wasn't getting enough sleep or food. And to top it all off she was trying to make sure both he and Ron passed their classes as well. Harry thought it was only a matter of time before she cracked under the pressure.

When he saw the unshed tears in her eyes he slammed his book shut (earing himself a reproachful glare from Madam Pince). He had no idea what to do with a crying girl. Judging by the horrified look on Ron's face neither did he. The sound of the book slamming shut had stopped her ranting, but also led to a few tears falling down her face.

"Hermione I can't revise like this. Neither can Ron. No, don't say anything, just hear me out okay? You're smarter than us. You can read something and then remember it weeks later. Me and Ron can't do that. All this constant reading of our books and notes doesn't help us. It's not that we don't want to revise with you, hell we'd be barely passing our classes if it wasn't for you, we just need a new way to do it."

Looking at his friends he saw that they were hanging on to his every word. Hermione had even stopped crying. Maybe he should have had this talk with her sooner.

"Professor Lupin was telling me about different ways of revising the other week. He said not everyone learns the same way. The way you revise doesn't work for me and Ron. We need to try something else."

"He's got a point Hermione. I can't do this. These books aren't interesting and reading them constantly puts me to sleep."

She looked at the boys thoughtfully. Harry made an excellent point. She watched them both struggle through the readings over the last two years. She had always put it down to them just not wanting to put the effort in, but maybe Harry was right. But she didn't know of any other way to revise. She always revised like this and it always got her top marks.

"You're right. It's just I've always done things this way and it's always worked for me. I don't know how else to do this. Did Professor Lupin mention any other ways?"

"Er – yeah," Harry really wished he paid better attention that night. There was just so much to take in. "He said some people need to see something done in order to do it. And some people learn more by listening."

"That makes sense," she gave Ron a long scrutinizing look. "I think you might be an auditory learner."

"I'm a what?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "It means you remember things you hear better then things you read. It makes sense really, especially when you think about Norbert."

"What does Norbert have to do with studying?" Harry asked.

"Well when we first found out about the egg Ron was able to tell us the laws regarding dragons," she explained. Turning to Ron, she added "I imagine you learned all that from listening to your brother."

"Yeah I did. Whenever Charlie comes home he tells us all sorts of things about the dragons. Bill does the same about the pyramids and wards. It was interesting, and before Hogwarts I enjoyed listening to them talk about the different magics they've seen." Ron said enthusiastically. He remembered most of what they told him because they made it interesting. This just might work, and he wouldn't have to spend hours poring over books anymore.

"I don't think that would work for you Harry. Maybe you learn better with visuals. Was there anything else Professor Lupin said?"

"Yeah. He, uh, said something about doing it first. I think he called it hands-on learning," he half asked.

"Hmmm," she hummed. "That could work for you. You picked up flying quickly without any real instruction. And you tend to do better with the practical part of classes then you do with the theory portion."

Hermione was lost in thought for a few minutes before narrowing her eyes at the boys. "I hope you don't think this is going to be an excuse for you two to not do the reading. If you aren't going to read I'm not going to help."

Harry's eyes widened, "Of course not Hermione! We'd never do that to you. What if we all read the work first then talk about it? I don't understand half the stuff in the theory until you explain it to me anyway." Ron nodded along. He could push himself through the reading to get to that if he had to.

"There's just one problem," Ron said. "Madam Pince isn't too keen on us talking, I doubt she's going to let us practice spells in here." Looking over at said woman they saw her staring them down for daring to have a hushed conversation in her domain. As tonight seemed to be a lost they began packing up their books.

It wasn't until they exited the library that they resumed their conversation. "We can't use the Common Room either. It would be too easy for someone to get hit with a stray spell if we become distracted," and with the twins around that was always a possibility.

"Maybe we can use an empty classroom," Hermione suggested. She thought it over for a minute then nodded to herself. "Yes, that would be perfect. It would be quiet like the library and there shouldn't be any distractions." She beamed at the boys, "I think this can really work."

It wasn't until Christmas break that the professors would notice a marked improvement in both Harry and Ron's grades (Hermione's obviously didn't need any improvement, but she did seem slightly less stressed). The only professor who wasn't surprised was Lupin. But then again it had, in around about way, been his idea.


End file.
